V2 - Monitoring and research activity at Stromboli and Panarea Task 5 - Reconstruction of the explosive Holocene events and evaluation of the presence of a magmatic body in the area (Panarea)

Panarea and surrounding islets result from the interaction between volcanic activity of local and exotic provenance and sea-level fluctuations starting from the last interglacial (MIS 5). Three steps of geological evolution are defined: pre (> 124 ka), syn (124-81 ka) and post-MIS 5 (< 81 ka to present). This last interval of time is mainly characterized by the emplacement of pyroclastics of uncertain provenance which are widely known as Brown Tuffs (BT). Some other pyroclastics of exotic provenance derived from the neighbours Aeolian Islands and from the Phlegrean Volcanic District occur; they allow the BT succession to be chronologically constrained between ca. 70 and 11 ka B.P. Local volcanic activity at Panarea is marked out by the Basiluzzo dome (ca. 50 ka B.P.) and by some pumiceous lapilli tephras. Our aim is to study the recentmost volcanic activity of Panarea. In this sense, we will focus on the younger BT and on the local pumiceous tephras which imply a sporadic but recurrent explosive activity up to between 20 and 11 ka. Sedimentological, geochemical and rock-magnetism features will be defined with the purpose to investigate chronology, emplacement mechanisms and provenance source of the pyroclastics. As regards provenance sources, already available data on the submerged portions of Panarea will be taken into account with the purpose to highlight the occurrence of minor eruptive centers, at present submerged or buried, which could have been emerged during the considered time span characterized by a sea-level which was, most of time, lower than present one.